A Fairfax County Police patrol cruiser struck the side of a Fairfax County Public Schools bus carrying around 40 students and five adults around 12:44 p.m. on April 7, a police release said.
The female officer, a 16-year veteran out of the Franconia District Station, was responding to a nearby report of a shoplifting and driving northbound on Backlick Road when she collided with the bus that was crossing Backlick at Floyd Avenue. The students from Mark Twain Middle School were returning from a field trip.
During the incident, the bus kept moving forward and its rear wheels mounted the hood of the police cruiser.
Police said two students, one adult chaperone and the officer were treated for minor injuries and released after being taken to the hospital. They noted the bus driver was a 58-year-old woman but did not release the age or name of the officer who was involved.
Crash reconstruction detectives have already determined neither speed nor alcohol were contributing factors in the crash.